A Gripe Box

I read about the idea of starting a Gripe Box once and loved the idea. As the mom of kids who sometimes bicker and complain, this can be a wonderful tool to diffuse anger. This can help everyone involved sort things out in a calm, rational manner.

Get a box or a jar - whatever you prefer and decorate it. Put it somewhere where you can see it on a daily basis - in your kitchen is a great spot. Then as you have gripes, you go in and write them down on a small piece of paper or an index card and put them in the box.

At the end of every month, you can empty the box or jar out and take a look at everyone's gripes. You will all be surprised at how irrelevant most of them are at a later date. Some of them you might want to discuss and talk about, finding a solution or coming up with a plan for your children of how to handle the problem later on.

You can teach each other how to problem - solve and how to work together as a team to talk out your gripes. Watch it even turn into a fun thing.